My Apple Prince
by False Ends
Summary: Megumi Tadokoro, always dream't of being loved by her Apple Prince, the question is... Even if the Apple Prince told her he loves her, would she still try to deny her heart? Or will they overcome their differences and let the hearts be free... Without doubts... And without fear of loosing each other. [I DO NOT OWN SHOKUGEKI NO SOMA AND I ALSO DO NOT OWN THE PICTURE I HAVE USED...]
Chapter 1: High Fever

Waking up in a particularly quiet morning in the Polar Star Dormitory was quite a new experience for Soma Yukihira. He was not used to this feeling, something must be terribly wrong for this to happen. He cautiously scanned the dormitory for any 'Fishy' antics their fellow Dorm-mates might be pulling. Soma then turned his head and saw a note attached to the fridge.

" _Dear Soma-kun and Megumi- chan_

 _Hey, we'll be gone for a while okay? You two just stay there and we'll be back around noon, Isshiki -senpai was suddenly challenged to a shokugeki so early in the morning. Anyway just cook something up while we're gone._

 _P.S: Soma-kun, sorry in advance, but can you please check on Megumi-chan regularly? I was about to wake her up earlier, but I noticed that she was really exhausted and was a little hot._

 _\- Yoshino "_

Soma put a hand under his chin and repeated what he just read, he felt a nerve twitch he read that they left Tadokoro in his care while they accompany Ishhiki-senpai to his Shokugeki. Soma took a long breath to ease his worries, being alone with Tadokoro felt kinda nice he admitted to himself, but a sick Tadokoro? Soma then opened his eyes as if he just entered a Shokugeki himself, he then gathered some ingredients from the fridge and from their garden outside to make Tadokoro some breakfast.

 _I wonder if Tadokoro's still feeling bad. I better check up on her…_

Soma practically tip-toed to Tadokoro's room; knocking on her door to ask if she was already awake, Soma waited outside her door for a few more minutes until he heard the door unlock. There he saw Tadokoro bundled up in her warm blanket and is still in her cute pyjamas. Soma felt a slight blush upon seeing Tadokoro like this, yes she was still not feeling well, but he cuteness never fails to impress him every time he would see her smiling or being so immersed in cooking that she forgets he's even with her, allowing him to admire her more without her feeling embarrassed.

"S-Soma-kun? What is it? Can I help you with something?" she asked the boy, Soma just patted her shoulder and asked Tadokoro to layed down on her bed while he checked her temperature. Just as he suspected it, from the moment he patted her shoulder, she was steaming hot! Soma panicked quite a bit and rushed down stairs to fetch some towels and soaked them in a basin he carried up to her room. Tadokoro giggled with embarrassment upon seeing Soma acting so 'Protective' of her, she liked it that he was taking care of her despite her protests earlier that she's just fine. Soma sat down on the floor as he regularly changed the wet towels in her head, dabbing them in water every now and then.

"Neh Tadokoro…" Soma absent-mindedly started "I can tell you're hungry what breakfast dish do you want? I already gathered some ingredients down stairs, just tell me what you want and I'll prepare it for you, okay?" Tadokoro blushed and kept telling Soma to not go that far for her, but she was already too late her stomach betrayed her, as it grumbled. Tadokoro blushed furiously, embarrassed that she was bothering Soma to make her breakfast since she didn't have the strength to do it herself this morning.

"S-Soma-kun… C-Can you please cook some warm soup for me? It can be any soup, just something to warm me up… Please?" Tadokoro needn't to tell Soma again, Soma nodded and ran down stairs to prepare the soup his father would make whenever he would have a fever.

 _Alright, time to make some chicken soup… I guess I'll make some orange juice while I'm at it…_

Soma prepped the ingredients need for chicken soup while at the same time, getting some oranges and peeling them. Soma finished the prep work for the chicken soup and went to find their juicer. Sometime around after finding the juicer, Soma smelled the chicken broth ready and then he added the noodles, some salt and pepper. Lastly added some parsley, he then covered the lid and went to fetch a soup bowl. After sometime Soma was already finished! A proud grin flashed crossed his face. He then put the soup bowl and orange juice in a tray and went upstairs to Tadokoro's room.

 _Man, is this enough? She might still be hungry after this…_

Soma bit his lip and shook his head. Having had the permission to enter her room, he then saw Tadokoro's smile, that same smile that she had when she passed the Autumn Elections. Soma's heart fluttered as he felt butterflies in his stomach. Checking her temperature again, Soma then noticed Tadokoro's hand shaking when she was trying to eat the soup.

"Need help with that? Here let me…" why was he doing this? Why is he going the extra mile for Tadokoro? Yes she was his friend, but it always felt different back then. Why now? Why is he feeling this sinking feeling in his stomach, he was a loss for words when he was spoon-feeding Tadokoro, lightly blowing on the hot soup to avoid having her have a burn her tongue.

"S-Soma-kun…" grabbing his attention, he shot up with slight worry plastered across his face, Tadokoro gently smiled "It's really good! Whose recipe is this?" Soma scratched his cheek and put his hands on his head while looking up.

"It was my mother's… But I couldn't remember I time it was prepared by her, so I can only remember its taste from what my father makes." Tadokoro looked down her hands and fiddled with them, a nervous habit of her that Soma took notice of. "Tadokoro…" he began, but a voice in his head kept shouting to him 'No' he was tongue tied. Tadokoro tilted her head in confusion after that.

"Is something bothering you Soma-kun?" she asked while taking a sip on her orange juice. Soma nodded ever-so-slightly causing her to worry about him. This was also what he liked about her… Wait did he just said he liked Tadokoro?!

"N-nothing - ! It's nothing Tadokoro, no need to worry about me. Just get some rest and if you need me then just call me, okay?" before Soma could leave her room to clear his mind, Tadokoro did exactly what he was dreading.

 _Please don't make me stay… Please don't… I won't be able to leave again if you ask me to stay Tadokoro…_

Tadokoro lightly held on to Soma's shirt before he left. Tadokoro seemed flustered at first, but practically willed herself to have the strength. "S-Soma-kun… C-Can y-you stay a little longer? I… I mean if you don't want to its okay! Y-you don't have to stay…" Tadokoro went on babbling, flustered and embarrassed. She was spewing words right out of her mouth right now, she sighed a bit, but it was enough for Soma to notice. I mean who was she really to Soma? She's not someone as noticeable like Erina with her God Tongue and master cooking skills. Tadokoro bit her lip waiting for Soma to reply.

"Sure, I'd love to stay with you." Tadokoro would've jumped around in her bed if she had the strength, so she simply went with smiling at Soma, but this smile was different from the others it was simpler, yet you can already feel her welcoming emotions and delight.

 _Don't… Please Tadokoro… Don't do this to me… I don't want to lose you if ever we…_

Soma's train of thought was halted when he suddenly heard Tadokoro's voice, here was she again, worrying about him. Soma assured her that everything was fine and she doesn't have to worry about anything else other than getting better as soon as possible.

"Soma-kun… Do you want to hear a fairy tale I loved ever since I was a child? It's my favourite one and every time I get sick… My mother would tell me the story while I slept in her arms." Tadokoro blushed while fiddling with her hands in her lap, staring at the furiously as she scolded herself.

 _Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why would Soma-kun be interested in 'That' story…_

"Tadokoro?" Soma waved in her face in an attempt to snap her out of her thoughts.

"E-Eh? What is it Soma-kun?"

She didn't quite catch what he said, but she vaguely remembers something, but couldn't just think about it clearly.

"I said I would want to hear the story of yours. It helped you sleep didn't it?"

Tadokoro smiled and concealed her blush, hiding it as if her life depended on it. She took a deep breath and told Soma the story of The Apple Prince.

"Well… Once upon a time, in a forest a fair maiden was tasked everyday by her evil step mother and step sisters to do hard chores and tend to their apple tree in their backyard. One day the fair maiden woke up with a fever, try as she might, she wasn't getting better anytime soon. On her first night alone, she was visited by her fairy godmother-" before she could even finish the story, Tadokoro fell asleep. Soma couldn't help, but giggle at her. It was true, even if she's the one who's telling the story. She fell right asleep doing so. Covering her with her blanket, Soma then tidied up the dish and put them into a tray as he was walking downstairs, he suddenly felt a grumble escape his stomach. He clutched his stomach and looked at the time… It was already 11!? He remembers going inside Tadokoro's room around 8 AM and he couldn't believe how time flew when he was there, three hours! He didn't even notice that Isshiki-senpai and the other Polar Star Dormitory members were back, they all cheered for Isshiki after all he won the Shokugeki and drove those pesky contractors away from their precious dormitory.

"Oh that reminds me Soma-kun did you take care of Megumi-chan while we were gone? Isshiki pried Soma for answers, even the other members of the dormitory were curious. Soma tried to dismiss everyone's questions and tried to get away with some excuse. But, before he could do that, Yuki and Ryoko took a peek at Tadokoro's room and saw her smiling peacefully while muttering something in her sleep.

" _Soma-kun… Thank you so much… You're my Apple Prince…"_

After hearing Tadokoro sleep talk, Yuki had grins from ear to ear. Down stairs, they could already hear Soma's voice as he kept throwing excuses and lies. With a sly smile, both Yuki and Ryoko nodded, putting their small plan into action to embarrass Soma further.

"Oh my Apple Prince… Thank you so much for taking such good care of me." Soma didn't seem to be embarrassed at all! How dense could he be!?

"Oh, did Tadokoro tell you guys the story of The Apple Prince? She was telling it to me earlier before she fell asleep…" before he realized that he talked to much, Soma realized he had buried himself a hole. Now the questions didn't stop flooding him.

"You like her don't you!" asked Yuki

"No, HE LOVES HER! LOOK AT HIS FACE!" interjected Ryoko

"Nah, Soma's too dense to think about those kinds of stuff." Told by Marui, that once certainly stung Soma.

"Give him a break Marui, it's not like you're any better." Laughed Sato

"My, my, my, I didn't think Megumi-chan was your type Soma-kun, oh well you two work well together, one hot headed cook and one that's calm and serene , she balances out your reckless tendencies doesn't she?" a flashback of memory replayed in Soma's mind. That time when Shinomiya-senpai intentionally put some bad cauliflowers in the pantry so that the other contestants would surely fail the dish if they hadn't grabbed the good ones first.

Some was furious that time. He couldn't care less if Shinomiya would fire him instead of Tadokoro… But why is he feeling like that? Yes Tadokoro was his friend… But is that all that she'll ever be? Soma suddenly found himself in deep thought, nothing but Tadokoro was on his mind.

Soma excused himself to think about what's happening to him. The other Polar Star Dormitory members seemed to not bother by his request for them to stop asking so many questions. Soma lay down his bed and think clearly about what he' feeling right now, what strange and alien feeling he has that he hasn't experienced yet. Deciding to not look into it too much, Soma took a nap to clear his mind. Before he could further drift off to sleep, he heard a knocking at his door. He lazily got up and opened it to see Isshiki-senpai with a happy smile on his face.

"What is it senpai?" Soma wanted nothing more than to clear his mind right now. Isshiki politely requested to sit down and talk with Soma after entering his room. Soma wanted answers, Isshiki could already tell on his mind.

"What happened with Megumi-chan, Soma-kun? You took very good care of her and all, so what's bothering you? You seem conflicted and confused." Soma was surprised on how Isshiki read him like an open book he clearly was the worst at hiding things.

"Well… I suppose I feel 'Strange' around Tadokoro… It feels weird."

"I suppose you're having feelings for Megumi-chan, Soma-kun. It might not be the time to start thinking about this… But you shouldn't bottle these feelings up. Follow your heart, okay?" Soma smiled and thanked Isshiki-senpai.

 _*Tadoko's Dream*_

" _Where am I? S-Soma kun Is that you?" Tadokoro woke up to the sound of birds chirping and hearing the gush of a river nearby from where she lay. Feeling a hand ran through her hair, she felt her cheeks burning up when she saw the person caressing her face was non- other than her precious, Soma-kun._

" _Oh, seems as though my Princess has already woken up." Soma said, dressed in his extravagant and dashing outfit, perfect for a prince! Tadokoro also noticed that Soma carried a picnic basket with him, Tadokoro got up and sat with Soma._

" _S-Soma-kun… Where are we?" Holding up a hand to her drumming chest, Tadokoro just couldn't have enough of Soma's smile, it made her stomach do somersaults and she felt like she's going to explode with happiness. Hearing Tadokoro's question, Soma tilted his head like Tadokoro does and went closer and closer to her. With each move he made, he now felt Tadokoro's breath, she was red as a tomato!_

" _Soma-kun… You're too close…" she tried to gently push him, but to no avail, Soma ignored her and put a hand on her forehead to check her temperature._

" _Hmm, you don't seem to have a fever…Was it a bad dream, Megumi?" hearing Soma call her by her first name, Tadokoro couldn't help but cry in happiness._

" _Please… Don't do this Soma-kun… If you do… I never want to wake up from this dream…" Soma took it upon himself and hugged Tadokoro, she tried to resist the urge to hug him back, but no matter what she tried, she couldn't help herself; she was being honest right now._

" _What are you talking about silly? I'll always be with you… Dummy, hehehe." Tadokoro giggled herself. Lifting her chin up, Soma locked into Tadokoro's eyes, closing the gap between them. Tadokoro was surprised, she shoved Soma causing him to fall to his bottom._

" _S-Soma –kun! This is wrong!" Soma's eyes of betrayal and disappointment stung Tadokoro. She denied his feelings because of the thought of her being unworthy of Soma._

" _Megumi… Why are you pushing me away…" Soma said, clenching his fist with much frustration. Tadokoro held her ground. She then told Soma the reason why she can't bring herself to love him too much._

" _Soma-kun… I'm not pushing you away…"_

" _THEN TELL ME, WHY!?" he managed to shout, feeling his heart being slowly ripped out of his body. He couldn't believe it! The girl he loves so much, suddenly rejecting his advances._

" _BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO LOSE YOU TO ERINA!" shouted Tadokoro back to him, she cried and held her hands to her chest as she trembled. She felt her knees weaken and eventually falling onto them, having all the strength in her sucked out. Soma eyes widened. Was this the reason why she never wanted for them to get married? Was this the reason why she only wanted to be close friends with him? After all they've been through? Soma then gently smiled and calmly approached the crying Tadokoro… Kneeling up to the crying girl, she kept saying 'Sorry' to him._

" _Is that why you're always keeping your distance with me? Megumi… I-I didn't know…" lifting up her crying face, Soma wiped away the tears that stained her beautiful face._

" _S-Soma-kun… I'm not worthy for you… You should be with Erina… hehehe… You two go well together… don't worry about me… I'll be fine… Cause in the end… Your heart was never belonged with me to begin with…" Soma felt torn apart, the love of his life is slowly moving away from him. Megumi Tadokoro, the girl that he'll walk hell for, the girl that makes his life sweet. Soma didn't have a reaction. Tadokoro was expecting him to walk away…_

 _Yes… Please walk way… Be angry at me Soma-kun… You'll only waste your life if you stayed with me…_

 _Taking a deep breath, Soma gently took a hold of Tadokoro's hand… Admiring the beauty that was Megumi Tadokoro Soma didn't need a perfect woman. Sure, Erina had the qualities of a great and admirable woman; she was smart, she was beautiful and she was talented. But…_

" _I admit… Erina is without a doubt, a man's perfect dream…" Tadokoro smiled bitterly, feeling the bitterness that she casted upon herself, work its way up. She knows her place, she was happy that Soma finally realized that he can be with someone better than her._

" _But…" Megumi then felt her heart skip a beat, what was that she heard? She forced herself to not get her hopes up, still denying the love that he harboured for her._

" _I never needed the perfect woman to begin with… Because… Why would I trade the perfect woman, when I have the girl that made me feel the happiest man on the planet." Holding up her chin, Soma smiled gently at Tadokoro._

" _I love you… Megumi Tadokoro… It's that simple, I love how you're so loyal and sweet to me, I love how you always give the time of day to comfort me whenever something went wrong. And I'm glad… I'm glad to her what you have to say… But the thing is… I don't care any about anyone more than you. You're the one that I need… Please… Please don't ever make me worry like this again…" Soma was the one that started crying, Tadokoro blushed as she hugged him, feeling the warmth that she always had, but doubted the idea of that warmth being meant for her._

" _Soma-kun you Dummy… I still have to wake up from my dream…" Soma's eyes widened as Tadokoro suddenly vanished away from his world in a flash of blinding light._

Tadokoro awakened with tear stains, looking up the ceiling in her bedroom, she checked her forehead and noticed that the fever she had, subsided. She smiled, but it was a smile of the bitterness of reality. Oh how she wanted to forever fall asleep and be with Soma in her dreams, but alas… That was only happening in her dreams…

Or so she thought…

"I knew it… He would only love me in my dreams… Hehehe… Why did I ever expect him to love me back?" putting her hands in her crying eyes, she felt weak. Feeling a hand brush up the tears that were falling, she noticed Soma was in her room. He sat there quietly, wiping the tears away from her and after that…

"I'm pretty sure I love you too, Tadokoro…" Soma said scratching his cheek. Unbeknownst to Tadokoro, she had been sleep- talking!

"S-Soma-kun! W-What a-are y-you ta-talking about?!"Tadokoro fumbled and blushed, hearing Soma utter the dreaded words that made her legs jelly, her stomach churn and her head feeling dizzy.

"It's how you heard it. I love you… Megumi Tadokoro… From the time I challenged Shinomiya-senpai to a shokugeki… The only one running through my mind… Was you… I never felt so stupid after that. You-" Soma felt something warm caressing him, Soma found Tadokoro clutching on his chest while sobbing.

"Soma- kun… Don't ever say those words again… Please… If you do… I'll never be able to let go again…" Soma smiled, he giggled and lifted up Tadokoro's chin. Looking eye to eye with her was like seeing the same golden eyes that he had, it was a trait that the both share. He fondly caressed her cheek and closed the gap between them. Their lips coming together and Tadokoro feeling every wrong thing fall away, every problem and doubt that she ever had melted away…

"I never want you to ever let go again, we'll fight this together, neh? Megumi?" Megumi's heart fluttered, she kissed him back after hearing him say her first name. She now accepted it, she now accepted her heart and her love for Soma.

"I'm sorry for not telling you sooner… Soma-kun…"

"Don't worry… The wait was well worth it…"

 _~ End_

 _ **So uhmm… How was it you guys? I hope you like this SomaxMegumi… Definitely going to write up another chapter if this gets a few reviews. Personally if you guys would ask me, I think that Megumi really has a fighting chance against Erina. I didn't like her personality cause she essentially never worked hard for something. Sure she's cute and all, but before you give Megumi the short end of the stick, I want you to ask yourselves…Would you have chosen a person with her personality over a person that was with you from day 1? Cuz from what you can see, Megumi has been on Soma's side ever since their class with Chapelle! For goodness sake, I know that Erina's the lead girl and she was the one panned in the moment Soma's father told him about cooking for a woman you want. But all in all, what if the point of Soma was just to impress her? You know, just make her see the truth about her harsh treatment on people who have worked their butts off for each dish they make. I also would like to point out that when Megumi was about to be fired by Shinomiya, you can already tell the sheer anger Soma expressed, the balls of that he had! Anyway those were just my two cents on the whole 'Soma and Erina are bound to be together and that Megumi is doomed for just being a side character Soma admires.'**_

 _ **P.S: I like even like how Megumi and Soma have the same eye colours, I mean did you remember that in the anime, when Megumi was about to be fired, those yellow eyes of him were set ablaze!**_

 _ **~ ChunniSenpaii :3**_


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